Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
What can a caged bird teach you? It could inspire you to be a strong, independent woman, says this post.
My Dear Mitthu,
I write this letter to you with great love and gratitude for teaching me the greatest lesson of my life. I am also sorry for not being able to understand you when I was younger. I am sorry for not asking you this question before everything else. Do you remember me? I hope you do, but if you don’t, let me make you understand how you touched my life.
So, our story goes like this: when I was in the 2nd standard I went to my mama’s (maternal uncle) home. There I saw his pet parrot, and I played it with it too. It used to speak, yes; it used to call my uncle’s name and other sweet mutterings. It was the most magical thing I ever saw. From that day on, I pestered my father to get me a pet parrot. Reluctantly, my father yielded to my demand. That is how you came into my life, and trust me, I felt like I was the happiest kid on this planet.
I took the responsibility of feeding you and looking after you. I was doing my work perfectly, but whenever I would feed you by putting my hand inside your cage, you would bite me. Whenever I took you out of your cage – so that you could feel the outside air – you wanted to fly away from me. I just could not understand why were you so ungrateful after all that I did for you despite of my school and homework!
Then came the fateful day when one of my cousins asked me to take you out of your cage (to prove that I did this regularly) and I did. This time, I was not in a closed space, but in a verandah. You bit me and flew away. I cried for the whole day after that.
I now understand why you did so, Mitthu.
Now you must be thinking – this is a common incident that happened because of a young kid’s silly mistake, what’s the big deal? But this incident has influenced my life in a way you can’t imagine. I now understand why you did so, Mitthu. It was not because you were ungrateful, but because you were fighting for your freedom to fly in the open skies which was, is, and always will be your birthright.
What an innocent little kid I was that I could not understand your struggle back then. I have understood it now because being an woman in the Indian society, I sometimes feel like a caged bird, too. Because time and again I am stopped from making decisions for myself – in the name of family or societal norms. I too wish to fly like you, I want to take a flight of my wishes, my dreams and my hopes. I will fight for it too, like you did for your freedom, until there is a day that I get what I want or I have no strength left in me to fight.
I will not give up, I promise you. Thanks for being an inspiration in my fight for my rights and beliefs. I will always remember you. Hope you remember me now and understand the role you played in my life.
With lots of love and affection,
Priyanka
Pic credit: Caged bird image via Shutterstock.
I am happy-go-lucky person,a quiet observer of things going around me.I am a fresher in IT sector.I love life with all its abnormalities and challenges it has to offer.I read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
Please enter your email address